Following the approval by the municipal council of Arona on 6th February of the urban development agreement with the owners of the El Mojón land, which unblocked the partial plan – the sought-after land parcel of 908,306 square meters at the entrance to Los Cristianos -, the city council is now progressing towards receiving the urbanization with all the necessary basic infrastructures (such as streets, sidewalks, sewage networks, electrical connections, and pumping stations, among others).
This process, through which the council will take responsibility for the maintenance of this urban space (after a municipal technical inspection), is crucial to initiate the processing of building permits. This applies to both private plots, where the construction of hotels, residential properties, commercial establishments, and restaurants is scheduled; and public spaces (comprising 36% of the total surface area), where various sports, social, and cultural facilities will be erected (including a venue for fairs, congresses, and shows), along with two large parks already completed that cover an area of nearly 53,000 square metres.
Following the plenary session where all parties except Nueva Canarias, who voted against, and Vox, who abstained, supported the approval of the agreement, the technical and legal team of the Urban Planning department has indicated, as a projection, that the first building permits could be processed this year, each accompanied by a mandatory technical report. As per municipal estimates, the investment in the area is expected to exceed 1 billion Euros, creating over 3,000 direct job opportunities.
The mayor, Fátima Lemes, mentioned to this newspaper yesterday that, subsequent to the approval of the agreement for the partial plan for El Mojón, the next steps are already in progress “to make it a reality as soon as possible”. “This is great news for Arona after a situation that has lingered for so many years; it will represent a substantial provision of land of public interest for the municipality of Arona,” she expressed.
On the other hand, Luis García, the Councillor for Urban Development in Arona, confirmed to DIARIO DE AVISOS that the council is currently examining all the information supplied by the Compensation Board. “We are providing updates on both the public park projects and the wastewater pumping station. Once the reports, which are on the verge of being finalised, are issued, they will be submitted to the Island Water Council for the pumping station and to the environmental body of the Canary Islands Government for the public parks, for the necessary sectoral assessments,” noted Luis García, commending the Compensation Board for fulfilling its commitments.
The Councillor for Urban Planning elaborated that, upon obtaining these reports, the Compensation Board must file the formal acceptance application for the completed urbanisation to be reviewed and processed. “At that point, the council would be ready to handle those licence applications received, as we would then be dealing with established urban land,” stated the councillor.
Luis García also highlighted that “the council is especially keen on ensuring compliance, just like the Compensation Board, as we aim to develop and propose public projects on those designated plots of land for cultural, sporting, and social-health purposes.” He also reiterated that the Arona council is actively seeking solutions to address the mobility challenges in the tourist areas of Los Cristianos and Playa de Las Américas.
